Austria Cover
Post Marke ; 14/07/2003 / Wien 1010
Taxe ATM Stamp ;
BAR FREIGEMACHT TAXE PERÇUE AUTRICHEPost Marke ; 14/07/2003 / Wien 1010
Taxe ATM Stamp ;14/07/2003 - 10:10 / Wien 1010
000010
11.07.2007 UNESCO World Cultural Herigate Lake Neusiedler See - Burgenland Face Value ; 1,00€
Lake Neusiedl (German:Neusiedlersee Hungarian: Fertő tó) is the second largest steppe lake in Central Europa, straddling the Austrian-Hungarian border. The lake covers 315km2, of which 240 km2 is on the Austrian side and 75 km² on the Hungarian side. The lake's drainage has an area of about 1,120 km². From north to south, the lake is about 36 km long, and it is between 6 km and 12 km wide from east to west. On average, the lake's surface is 115.45 m above the Adriatic Sea and the lake is no more than 1.8 m deep.Most of the lake is surrounded by reeds which serve as a habitat for wildlife (making the lake an important resting place for migratory birds) and are harvested in winter as soon as the ice is solid enough. This serves a double purpose, one ecological (removal of the bulk of organic matter that would otherwise decay in the lake) and one economic (the reed is sold for various purposes, mostly related to construction and housing). During the summer months, there are occasional reed fires, as dry reed is easily flammable, and fires spread quickly because of the almost constant wind. Water quality is determined by temperature, wind, and by the amount of salt and mud emanating with the ground water from the sediments.
Several plans for dams and other intrusive construction works which would have destroyed the
lake and its biotopes were discussed during the first half of the 20th century but came to nothing. Detailed plans to divide the lakebed with earthworks so that certain parts with reasonably fertile soil could be permanently drained and claimed for agriculture while the remaining parts would be used for intense aquaculture had been finalized and approved in 1918 but were abandoned when most of the lake became Austrian territory after World War I. In 1971 plans for a bridge across the Austrian part of the lake were thwarted by environmentalists.
In 1993 the National Park Neusiedler See-Seewinkel gained international acceptance as an IUCN Category II preserve. In 2001 the national parks in Austria and Ferto-Hansag in Hungary were together accepted as a World Herigate Site.The Neusiedler See and its surrounding areas in Austria also enjoy protection through the Ramsar Convention on Wetlands.
Several plans for dams and other intrusive construction works which would have destroyed the
lake and its biotopes were discussed during the first half of the 20th century but came to nothing. Detailed plans to divide the lakebed with earthworks so that certain parts with reasonably fertile soil could be permanently drained and claimed for agriculture while the remaining parts would be used for intense aquaculture had been finalized and approved in 1918 but were abandoned when most of the lake became Austrian territory after World War I. In 1971 plans for a bridge across the Austrian part of the lake were thwarted by environmentalists.In 1993 the National Park Neusiedler See-Seewinkel gained international acceptance as an IUCN Category II preserve. In 2001 the national parks in Austria and Ferto-Hansag in Hungary were together accepted as a World Herigate Site.The Neusiedler See and its surrounding areas in Austria also enjoy protection through the Ramsar Convention on Wetlands.
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